bAuthor/b RobinsFanGirl

bPrompt/b #001

bTitle/bBeginnings

bWord Count/b

bRating/b PG

bSummary/b My first fic in the Zutara 100 Challenge! Woot! I've decided I'm going to do them in order. So I present to you "Beginnings".

bAuthor's Notes/b This takes place before the finale, "Sozin's Comet."

Beginnings

It was cold that night. The mist hanging gloomily around the Western Air Temple seeped into the banished prince's clothes, turning them from a bright green to an almost sage emerald color. He sat, feet hanging off of the edge of the temple's wall, and watched the mist. It swirled and danced despite the windless night, and it constantly had sharp flashes of colors. The mist reminded him of the fire he had seen with Aang when they had gone to see the firebending masters. It changed and morphed gently, much like Zuko's own transformation.

He blinked slowly as a sudden flashback hit his eyes.

"You won't have to worry about your destiny any more. Because I'll end it right there. Permanantly".

Zuko grunted and closed his eyes, picturing the enraged waterbender glaring deeply into his golden eyes. She nose had flared and her eyes had shimmered like a scary mixture of fire and ice. Zuko had been stunned speechless. Otherwise, he might have...well, he wasn't sure what he would have done, but he knew he would have regretted it. She had stalked away and Zuko had done nothing. He had thought Katara would have never forgiven him.

Another flashback.

"Orange is such a horrible color."

Zuko smiled faintly, opening his eyes and looking back out into the mist. Mai. He missed her. And he knew how angry she was now, and how hurt she was. He had seen that when he had gone to the firenation prison with Sokka. Guilt washed over Zuko's skin. He missed Mai...but not as much as he thought he would.

He had a new group of friends...if you could call them friends. Aang, the avatar, whom Zuko had hunted down for so long. The kid was a bit perky and optimistic, and he thought he was always right. It irked Zuko, even though Aang's stubbornness reminded Zuko somewhat of himself.

Then there was Sokka. The other guyish guy in the group. Sokka wasn't the smartest guy, and he was a bit of a dramatic, but Zuko had learned to count on Sokka whenever he needed to feel smart.

Toph, the blind girl. She taunted Zuko all the time, but she was only joking. Toph meant no real harm. She was actually pretty smart. Still, Zuko did not appreciate the way he called him 'Blazing Princess'.

And finally, Katara. He was glad he had finally earned her trust. She was not fun when she was mad at you. Zuko smiled faintly at the mention of her name in his mind. "Katara..." he whispered the name softly and touched his burn.

Katara had offered to heal his scar when the two were prisoners in Ba Sing Sei. Zuko pictured the concerned look on the girl's face, and the vial that held the so called 'water that could heal any wound'. He pictured her tears running down her face as she spoke of her mother. He thought of her fingering her necklace. What was so special about that thing, anyway?

He was brought out of his thoughts as he heard footsteps echoing behind him. He did not turn to see who it was. He already knew. The waterbender had an uncanny way of showing up when he was thinking about her.

Zuko smiled at the girl's voice and turned to face her.

"Hi, Zuko." The waterbending girl took a few steps closer, and Zuko turned to face her, curious on why she was holding back. Her blue eyes were concerned and confused.

"Hey." The dark-haired teenager motioned for Katara to come closer. She took a few wary steps before sinking to her knees. Zuko turned his entire body now, worried. "Katara?"

She looked at the floor and touched her necklace, sniffling. Zuko turned all the way around, swinging his legs up off the ledge and going into a crawling position. He slowly crawled over to her.

She looked up at him as he put a hand on her shoulder and took a seat beside her. She closed her eyes and turned away. Zuko put a hand on her chin and softly turned her head to face him.

Katara's eyes were large and shiny. She blinked and a tear trickled down her cheek. "Zuko." She reached over and gave him a hug.

Zuko felt a blush creep up the back of his neck and crawl onto his face, but he hugged her back. "Hey...what's wrong?"

Katara looked up at him from his chest and sniffed. "I...I miss my mom." She pushed her face back into his chest and sighed, though the sound wavered dangerously.

The firebender, being male, had no clue on how to comfort the girl. He blinked, trying to think of what Uncle would say. Then he discarded the idea, thinking of his previous attempt at this. Silver Sandwich? What was he thinking? Then Katara snorted quite unattractivelly, and Zuko could not help but grin.

"Well...Katara...er..." Zuko felt the grin swipe off his face and gently patted the waterbender's back. It made Zuko remember what his mother had done when he was sad. It was actually kind of embarrassing, but Zuko could think of nothing else.

He gripped her by the shoulders and pulled her away, staring deep into her twinkling blue eyes. He had never done this to a girl. Not even Mai.

"When your sad and your blue..." Zuko blinked and fought down a blush as he began to sing, "And you don't know what to do..." Katara blinked at him in confusion, obviously not getting why the firebending prince was trying to sing to her.

He started over. "Ahem...When your sad and your blue, and you don't know what to do, and sun don't seem to shine, just remember that your mine. And when the stars don't seem to gleam, know everything's not what it seems, And when your head feels like it's spinning, know tommorrow's a new beginning." Zuko cleared his throat uncomfortably and hummed for a moment before repeating, "New beginning..."

Katara was staring at him with shiny eyes that gleamed in amusement and sparkled happily. She smiled at him and nodded, hoping that he would continue.

Zuko shrugged helplessly at her. He couldn't remember any more of the song. Katara sighed and her face fell.

Zuko noticed and quickly began to make up verses. "Er..." He slowly took in a breath.

"When the water's not that cool, and the fire's not that warm, Come and talk to me, you won't feel bad no more. And when the sky outside's too gray, and the night won't turn to day, just know I'm always winning, come and see our new beginning." Here Zuko sighed and looked over at Katara, expecting to hear a laugh of disbelief.

But the waterbender was tenderly looking at him. She cupped his cheek in her hand, smiled at him, and leaned in. Zuko blushed but closed his eyes, softly puckering his lips.

He was startled when it wasn't his lips Katara aimed for. He flinched as her lips met his nose.

Zuko opened his eyes to look at her. She was still leaning in. He blinked and suddenly her lips were by his ear. "Thank you. I'll remember that."

Then she was on her feet, staring down at Zuko. She reached down, ruffled his hair softly, and smiled.

"Goodnight, Prince Zuko." The firebender smiled back at Katara, but she had turned away and was running down the hallway towards her room.

"Goodnight, peasent."